Patterned two-photon illumination by spatiotemporal shaping of ultrashort pulses

Opt Express. 2008 Dec 22;16(26):22039-47. doi: 10.1364/oe.16.022039.

Abstract

Multiphoton excitation by temporally focused pulses can be combined with spatial Fourier-transform pulse shaping techniques to enhance spatial control of the excitation volume. Here we propose and demonstrate an optical system for the generation of such spatiotemporally engineered light pulses using a combination of spatial control by a two-dimensional reconfigurable light modulator, with a dispersive optical setup for temporal focusing. We show that although the properties of a holographic beam significantly differ from those of plane-wave illumination used in previous temporal focusing realizations, this leads only to a slightly reduced axial resolution. We show that the system can provide scanningless, arbitrarily shaped, depth resolved excitation patterns that offer new perspectives for multiphoton photoactivation and optical lithography applications.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't